Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, Volume IX: The Twelve Links of Dependent Origination

(4) Original text: What is bodily karma? It refers to bodily actions. Whether in the desire realm or the form realm, in the lower realm it is called meritorious or non-meritorious karma; in the upper realm it is called immovable karma. What is verbal karma? It refers to verbal actions. The rest should be understood as previously explained. What is mental karma? It refers to mental actions. In the desire realm, it is called meritorious or non-meritorious karma; in the upper two realms, it is solely called immovable karma.

Explanation: What is bodily karma? Bodily karma refers to karmic actions created through the body, either actions of the desire realm or actions of the form realm. In the formless realm, bodily karma is not created because formless realm devas have no physical body. Who creates karmic actions through the body? It is the mental faculty that causes the six consciousnesses to create karmic actions through the physical body. In the lower desire realm, meritorious and non-meritorious karma are created; in the upper form realm, immovable karma is created because sentient beings in the form realm possess profound meditative concentration, their minds remain unmoved by objects, and thus their bodies, being directed, also remain unmoved and do not create bodily karma. Who directs the body? The body is directed by the mental faculty. When the mental faculty does not move the mind, consciousness does not move, body consciousness does not move, and the body does not move.

What is verbal karma? Verbal karma refers to karmic actions created through speech, that is, verbal actions. Verbal actions created in the lower desire realm are called meritorious and non-meritorious karma; in the upper form realm, they remain unmoved and are not created. This is because form realm devas have pure minds, possess pure conduct (Brahma conduct), and their minds remain unmoved by objects. Speech, being directed by the mind, remains unmoved and has no verbal karma. In the formless realm, there is no verbal karma because there is no body and no speech. What is mental karma? Mental karma here refers to karmic actions created by mental consciousness. Mental consciousness creates meritorious and non-meritorious karma in the desire realm; in the upper form realm and formless realm, it creates immovable karma because the mental faculty is pure and unmoving, so mental consciousness is pure and unmoving, as mental consciousness is directed by the mental faculty.

Original text: What is eye consciousness? It is the consciousness that, relying on the eye faculty in the future, cognizes form objects. It is the seed consciousness perfumed by all meritorious, non-meritorious, and immovable karma, and the resultant consciousness born from those seeds. As with eye consciousness, so too up to mental consciousness should be understood similarly. The distinctions in cognition arise from the supporting [faculty] and the object cognized. It should be understood that this is complete with six types in the desire realm, only four in the form realm, and only one in the formless realm. What is the feeling aggregate? It refers to all types of sensation. What is the perception aggregate? It refers to all types of image cognition. What is the formation aggregate? It refers to all types of mental actions created by volition. What is the consciousness aggregate? It refers to all types of cognition. All these aggregates pervade the three realms.

Explanation: What is eye consciousness? Eye consciousness is the consciousness that relies on the eye faculty to cognize form objects. It is the seed consciousness perfumed by all meritorious, non-meritorious, and immovable karma, and the resultant consciousness born from those seeds. As with eye consciousness, so too mental consciousness is understood similarly, arising from distinctions in cognition based on the supporting seventh consciousness and the six sense objects. In the desire realm, it possesses six types: form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharmas. In the form realm, it has only four: form, sound, touch, and dharmas. In the formless realm, it has only one: the dharmas of meditative concentration.

What is the feeling aggregate? The feeling aggregate refers to all types of sensation regarding dharmas: pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral sensations. What is the perception aggregate? The perception aggregate refers to all types of cognition of the images of objects, i.e., the cognition by the six consciousnesses (though the seventh consciousness also has cognitive functions). What is the formation aggregate? The formation aggregate refers to all types of volitional actions created by mental consciousness, i.e., the volition mental factor of the six consciousnesses (though the seventh consciousness also has the volition mental factor and also has formations). What is the consciousness aggregate? The consciousness aggregate refers to all types of cognition regarding object-dharmas, i.e., the cognition by the six consciousnesses (and the seventh consciousness also has cognition). These feeling, perception, formation, and consciousness aggregates all pervade the three realms; they exist within the desire realm, form realm, and formless realm because all have mental consciousness and the seventh consciousness, both of which possess the functions of feeling, perception, formation, and consciousness.